An update!

So things have been pretty busy around here. I have neglected the blog for awhile but I am hoping to get back in the habit of posting here often. Tonight I went to a local hot air balloon festival. I haven't been shooting much for my own lately, so it was fun to get out and use my camera without the pressure of absolutely having to bring something back. The funny thing is that I will probably end up using some of the images for one of my classes, so there was a little more to it than just having fun. I guess I can't shoot for the pure love of photography anymore. Also, when you shoot for fun you don't get paid, which kind of sucks.

Lately I have been getting paid nearly every time shoot, so that is a great improvement from where I stood this time last year. I feel like I am finally moving forward at more than just a snail's pace. Maybe there is something good career-wise in my future. But enough ranting, here are the photos from tonight:












The bottom four shots were taken around the RE/MAX balloon which is piloted by Wayne Standefer out of Dallas, TX area. Standefer is the guy with the striped shirt in the basket. He need quite a few people to weigh down the balloon after he got it filled up as the wind was to strong to actually take off. The pilots will light up there balloons for the crowd, whether or not they can actually take off. This part of the evening is called "the Glow" and, as expected, is one of the most popular parts of the evening.

My work does get used

Yesterday I was shooting the second century convocation for my school, Abilene Christian University, along with the primary shooter for most of their events Gerald Ewing. They had a slideshow of the centennial celebration over this last year that was being shown on two huge screens hung from the ceiling. I saw a lot of Gerald's work and was going to congratulate him when I saw some of my photos that I had shot for the university being shown in the slideshow as well. I felt proud to have a few of my photos make it into the slideshow and to have been part of something as large as a schools year-long birthday celebration. Seeing the three or four photos of mine that made it to the slideshow was much like watching the paper being printed during my internship. I felt like I was a part of a team effort, and although I was only a small part of the team, I still felt proud to see that my work was included in the wrap-up of the year.

Portfolio Review

Yesterday I went to the local paper, The Abilene Reporter News, and had my portfolio reviewed by their photo editor, Robin Larson. I enjoyed the review and talking with a professional in the business. I was really impressed by Larson, especially when I found out that she went to a pretty prestigous Photo J school and had some incredible instructors. As for my portfolio, it fared pretty well. She wasn't the harshest critique I have ever had, but she flat out cut several photos pretty quickly and discussed with me why some of them were borderline. It was nice to hear some positive critiques as well. I can remember about three or four years ago (yes I have been in school that long already) when I had my work reviewed by another Reporter News editor, Matthew Minard, and left with maybe one keeper. So for me, to walk out of the paper with most of my portfolio intact was a good feeling.
Portfolio reviews can be rough, especially when the reviewer pretty much rejects everything you have and you feel like you are starting over. Yet that is necessary, and sometimes those are the best critiques.
For me the challenge will be twofold: To replace the weaker photos in my portfolio and to not feel too confident in the ones I am keeping. I personaly strive to be humble about my work, I don't want to get overconfident as that makes for a weak photographer (and a weak person as well in my book). I should walk away from a mostly positive review the same way I do from a negative one, with renewed vigor for my work and a sincere desire to better myself and my craft. I am unsure of what the future holds for my family and I right now, but I know that I will keep shaping myself into a better and better photographer and hopefully will find steady work as a result.